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Many years ago, after Star Trek (the original series) had gone off the air and the fan mania began to really spike to a desperate level, Leonard Nimoy wrote a book that sought to explain to that fan base that he was just an actor, and he was not Spok. Mr. Nimoy discussed how some fans had approached him with absurd requests that only the character Spok could have done, such as mind-melding or other attributes associated with the TV show character. This caused Leonard Nimoy some consternation, since he was, after all, just an actor and not an alien named Spok. So he wrote this book to explain what was patently obvious to himself and many others; that he was first and foremost a plain old working stiff like everyone else. There was nothing sensational about him, nothing special - in fact, he didn't even consider himself a talented actor.
This was a rather modest pronouncement, since out of the entire cast of Star Trek, Mr. Nimoy has shown not only a competent acting ability, but also abilities in the disciplines of script writing, movie directing and producing. Even so, you have to admire him for telling his public that he wasn't Spok. (Contrast that to Clayton Moore, who all but told his public that he was the real "Lone Ranger.") The character Spok was just something that Mr.Nimoy had invented, a kind of acting persona useful for a TV show that only lasted a few seasons. Little did he know at the time that the character Spok would become so well known and loved by his fans that it would take on a life of its own in their minds and imagination. What he had to do was create some boundaries for himself so that others would realize that Spok was a fictional character.
So why am I relating this story and what does it have to do with the surprising title of this article? The reason is subtle but also obvious. My pen name, Frater Barrabbas, is a fictional persona that I use to promote the books that I have written, my system of magick and the magickal order that I represent to the public. While I may illuminate ideas, insights and opinions that do indeed belong to me, my author's persona, Frater Barrabbas, doesn't really exist. In truth, I am just an ordinary person who has had some rather unusual life experiences, but then again, so have many other folks. My intention is to share ideas and perspectives about ritual magick, and to aid and assist my readers in mastering their own process and doing the magick for themselves. What I am not trying to do is to create a cult of personality around myself.
However, I have recently been getting, from time to time, more unusual emails making fairly outrageous requests of me. A few have presented me with terrible life issues that are afflicting them, and have asked me to intervene so that through magick I might miraculously change their fortunes. These requests, if they are true, deeply touch me with sadness, but there is little that I can actually do to help them. Most people send me kind words or encouraging compliments, others tell me that they disagree with what I have written - all of this is well received and appropriate. Yet it seems that I am starting to get more outrageous emails as my popularity and notoriety expands, so I felt compelled to write this revealing apologia.
I have found that when I write articles and state my opinions to the public, and even banter with other occultists, it's always within the persona of Frater Barrabbas. Seldom do I actually reveal my true self hiding behind the scenes, since that real person doesn't want publicity or any notoriety to intrude into a very private life and career. While it might be true that such a revelation might not jeopardize my mundane existence, I have found that it is more expedient to use a pen name. Using an author's persona also forces me to apply a great deal of professional discipline when dealing with the public. This means that I must overcome my true feelings about a matter and respond in a tactful and dispassionate manner, even if that means stepping away from a hotly contested issue for a time and writing about it later when my passion has abated. I have learned the hard way that to write scathing or threatening emails, articles with a lot of cuss words or flaming replies to those who disagree with me is highly unprofessional, and it's also really stupid! If I act like an obnoxious idiot, then that will really distract and interfere with the real purpose for my writing, which is communicating my ideas.
To understand why I use a pen name, you would have to go back to where I lived in the past couple of decades. Some years ago I lived in a part of the country where sectarian prejudices could indeed make life difficult for me if it were known that I was a hard core occultist. I have always felt that it was prudent to mask myself with a pseudonym in order to safely present my beliefs and practices to the public. Even though I have moved away from that part of the country, the habit of using a pen name has continued. My author's mask is not particularly opaque or very effective, since anyone who really wants to know who I am could find out on the internet without too much difficulty. I am continuing to use this pen name to establish some boundaries within my life, and not out of misplaced fear, and I am hoping that my readers understand this point.
Does that mean that I am a fraud or somehow duplicitous? Actually, no! What I say in my books is true, as far as I know, and much of it is based on my own real experiences. My biographical pieces do indeed reveal my actual history, but mainly through a tightly focused occult lens. My mundane life and its various happenings haven't been fully revealed in any of my articles or writings. There is still quite a bit about me that is kept private and locked away in my heart and soul. That part of me is the real me, and it powerfully affects who I am and how I act towards others; but it's not the part of me that I reveal when I am writing as Frater Barrabbas.
For instance, I certainly wouldn't talk very much about my love life unless it had a bearing on the topic at hand, and then it would be made into more of an interesting story, colored by my occult proclivities and esoteric understandings. I am writing to present my ideas, thoughts and reflections, and at times I might take a few liberties with the actual facts to get those ideas communicated. I don't lie or make up stuff; I just don't tell the whole story, or I might even embellish a fact or two. I also omit things that I consider to be too personal and too revealing about the real me. I am sure that you can find those omissions, especially when I briefly mention something and then go on without explaining it much. The details of my mundane life are really no one's business but my own, so I do have boundaries that I seek to maintain.
Additionally, my persona, called Frater Barrabbas, has a certain personality that doesn't really represent me in a clear light. Frater Barrabbas is all about the glamor of occultism and ritual magick, and not much else. That really isn't who I am, since I have a life style, a career and an important relationship that I am often engaged with. If you read too deeply into the Frater Barrabbas persona you would think that all I do is work or study magick nearly 100% of the time. A misconstrued impression is that Frater Barrabbas is an unrelenting, self absorbed, occult fanatic. He has shown a tendency to be arrogant, impatient, judgmental, overly intellectual, too confident of his "truthiness" and even sometimes a bit of a prick (according to my girl friend). That isn't the real me, since I am often scratching my head about something that I am trying to figure out, or failing to adequately judge people or situations. I have a somewhat weaker personality with less intense opinions than how my persona is presented. I have doubts, fears and worries - pretty much like most everyone else. I am not insane (certainly) or delusional, and sometimes I revel in not thinking about anything serious or philosophical at all. Sometimes I just enjoy having some mindless fun. That's the real me behind the occult author facade, but of course, there's a lot more, too.
So if I say as a reminder to everyone that I am not Frater Barrabbas, then you might understand that I am just stepping away briefly from my author's mask to speak to you as a real person. It won't happen often, but at least you have been advised about this little fact. I am hoping that by writing this article that I might be able to stop some folks from sending me outrageous requests that I could never accomplish. I don't know the winning lottery number (if I did, I would use it myself), I can't levitate or cause others to fly, and I am not a miracle worker. As I have previously stated, my purpose for writing is to help people learn to use their own magickal powers. Even so, magick is really a human phenomenon. It can bend probabilities, but it rarely causes miracles. Since I am writing through an author's persona to help teach others what I know, it doesn't mean that I am all knowing or all powerful. Far from it! I am just a human being with certain particular virtues and flaws. If you send me an outrageous email request or come up and ask me to perform miracles for you, then I will have to back off and politely say to you, "I am sorry, but I am not that Frater Barrabbas!"
Frater Barrabbas
Suggested ebooks:
Aleister Crowley - The Star And The Garter
Andrew Lang - The Witch And Other Stories
Leo Ruickbie - The Winter Sabbat
Almost everyone that is interested in the Golden Dawn and that reads the internet is aware of the "Golden Dawn Flame War" that accompanied recent litigation. Anonymously published attack blogs and websites, falsely alleged everything from Nazi Golden Dawn connections to Golden Dawn death cults led by Satanists. Typical of these "anonymous attack blogs" is "The Golden Dawn Insider" - with a clear ties with Robert Zink's, Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn.
In March, 2008, our order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the outer order of the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega, launched an initiative to end the flame war and to promote greater harmony in the Golden Dawn community. As part of this initiative, I publicly and repeatedly condemned anonymously published websites and blogs attacking ANY Golden Dawn order, and publicly appealed to those misguided individuals attacking the Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn to stop. Thankfully, they did.
Robert Zink, however, refuses to do the same. Thus is is quite clear that anonymous attack blogs like "The Golden Dawn Insider," that this week resumed attacks on the HOGD/AO and its leaders, are published with the full knowledge and approval of EOGD leader, Robert Zink. This week the "Golden Dawn Insider" wrote:
"Does anyone find it odd that there has been a time of peace and quiet in the online Golden Dawn community recently, not in and of itself, but that it was broken simultaneously by David Griffin and his cohort "Frater Sincerus Renatus (SR)" AKA Tomas Stacewicz. This is just recent. Within a couple of days we have David Griffin blogging (scroll down below the video) about how Robert Zink's Golden Dawn order is nothing but new age garbage, and almost simultaneously we have Frater S.R. bashing Pat Zalewski's group. Are you guys just bored? Did you think nobody would notice?"The Robert Zink sponsored "Insider" here conflates with "flame war" with legitimate and healthy debate in the Golden Dawn community. In truth, I do not personally even object to Robert Zink reforming his EOGD in the decidedly New Age direction he has taken it. Diversity in the Golden Dawn community is a good thing. I have come to understand that there is plenty of room in the Golden Dawn community for New Age Golden Dawn orders as well as for Thelemic Golden Dawn orders. Such diversity is how our tradition grows.
The EOGD is certainly not "garbage" either. I have met privately with a number of EOGD members. They are hard working individuals that are very dedicated to the Golden Dawn system. Moreover, I am also the first to applaud Robert Zink when he does something good. For example, Robert Zink's initiative to help Haiti deserved to transcend inter-order politics, so I jumped on his bandwagon.
All I truly DO object to about Robert Zink - is his dishonesty in marketing. There is nothing wrong with New Age innovation. It is, however, highly dishonest to present New Age innovation as "traditional Golden Dawn" practice.
"It is highly dishonest to present New Age innovation as 'traditional Golden Dawn' practice."
In truth, there are significant and profound differences between various Golden Dawn orders - and the public has a right to know and understand these differences. For example, on his website, Robert Zink claims that his "Astral Initiation" can make you a "full Golden Dawn initiate" without ever leaving your own living room. All you have to do is send him 185 - and for your trouble - he will even throw in a free CD on how to "Unleash Your Inner Adept!"
The HOGD/AO, on the other hand, as a classical Golden Dawn order, insists on traditional Golden Dawn initiation while physically present in real Golden Dawn temples. We honestly and openly admit that the Golden Dawn is a spiritual path demanding an enormous amount of time, energy, discipline, and dedication.
In another essential difference, Robert Zink claims on his "The Golden Dawn Blog" that the Golden Dawn is really about "the coming New Age shift in 2012" and elsewhere that the Emerald Tablet of Hermes is really about "The Law of Attraction" as popularized in New Age film, The Secret. The HOGD/AO, on the other hand, understands that the classical Golden Dawn is rooted in the Hermetic and Rosicrucian traditions, teaching the ancient Egyptian Royal Art of Alchemy, Astrology, and Theurgy (Magic) with the ultimate aim of accelerating energetic evolution in order to attain Solar Ascension and Conscious Immortality. This is diametrically opposed from Robert Zink's "instant gratification" Golden Dawn promises.
Next the Robert Zink sanctioned, "Golden Dawn Insider" sock goes on to claim that HOGD/AO's Sincerus Renatus recently "attacked Pat Zalewksi's group."
In truth, Sincerus Renatus' article is not an "attack" at all, but rather a scholarly presentation of the very real differences between the HOGD/AO and Pat Zalewksi's "Order of the Golden Dawn." As Sincerus Renatus correctly points out, Pat Zalewksi (whose name is not even mentioned in the article!) believes that the Second Order of the Golden Dawn (the R.R. et A.C.) should be devoted to an intellectual study and analysis of the outer order rituals. This is extremely different from the HOGD/AO, where we teach a traditional Hermetic and Rosicrucian curriculum in advanced Hermetic and Rosicrucian magic and alchemy in our Second Order, remaining completely faithful to the classical Golden Dawn.
These clearly are essential differences between Golden Dawn orders and the public has a right to know. Such outlining of the actual differences between orders is certainly not "flame war" but rather scholarly debate.
There is one thing that I must agree with the "Insider" sock puppet on, however. He is absolutely correct that a great deal of rather unflattering and unfraternal material about the EOGD and the HOGD/AO still remain on one another's websites, fora, and blogs. There remain, for example, thousands of posts attacking our order in the archives of the EOGD forum. The EOGD websites and blogs are riddled with attacks on our order as well.
I completely agree with the "Insider" troll that it is high time to take this old "flame war" stuff down. For over two years now, I have offered to do so on a reciprocal basis with Robert Zink. The problem remains that Robert Zink completely and utterly refuses to take down any material attacking our order from the EOGD websites, blogs, etc.
Nonetheless, the HOGD/AO remains completely committed to harmony in the Golden Dawn community and against flame war.
The time is long overdue, however, for Robert Zink to renounce sock puppets, anonymous websites and blogs attacking other orders - and instead to make the same firm commitment to harmony in the Golden Dawn community that I have made - and that the HOGD/AO has championed for well over two years!
Sub Umbra Alarum Tuarum, Yeheshua
David Griffin
G.H. Frater Lux Ex Septentrionis
Imperator Ordinis, Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
outer order of the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega
"Ex Deo Nascimur.
In Yeheshua Morimur.
Per Sanctum Spiritum Reviviscimus"
Yesterday, Haiti was severely devastated by a 7.0 earthquake. Rescue workers desperately search for survivors beneath the rubble. Hospitals have been destroyed and people are being treated for their injuries in the street while dead bodies are scattered throughout the streets of Port-au-Prince covered in shrouds. A third of all Haitians - 3 million people - need emergency aid.
In response to this terrible earthquake in Haiti, Robert Zink (GH Frater PDR (Robert Zink) today issued a call to the entire Golden Dawn community to:"invoke the Magic of Light to bring comfort, stability to the earth so as not to have more after shocks and quakes, stability to the government so as to not have up risings. We can invoke forces of Light to bring about action faster from world governments and all those willing to give aid"
We echo Robert Zink's sentiment that we need to do everything we can spiritually and physically to help with this crisis.
Then it appears Robert Zink may have had an epiphany when he said:"Then there is the Dali Lama who while exiled from his own land, and having seen persecution and murder against his people continues to spread peace and light throughout the world. He has never uttered a negative statement against anyone."In a bizarre other development, following nine months respite from the Golden Dawn internet Feud, Robert Zink paradoxically today resumed publishing ad hominem attacks on the HOGD/AO and its leaders with the following post from EOGD member, Frater QALL, Ashlee Beebe (dastree07770@...) who wrote:"I can say from personal experience that (Griffin) is a nut job!"Sadly, there remain nearly 2,000 such ad hominem attacks on our order and its leaders archived on the EOGD Yahoo! forum as part and parcel of the Golden Dawn Internet feud. Clearly, these have nothing to do with fraternal debate or rational discussion. These posts serve no purpose except to stir strife between our orders.
Following the excellent example of the Dalai Lama, no matter how many new ad hominem attacks Robert Zink publishes on his website and fora - he merely strengthens me in my resolve that the HOGD/AO will not strike back at him.
In the spirit of the Dalai Lama, I choose to ignore the negative remarks about me that Robert Zink published today. Robert Zink will simply have to find someone else to demonize other than our order as his Golden Dawn "boogey man."
Instead - despite the very real differences between our two orders - the HOGD/AO is answering the EOGD's call to magical solidarity in the Golden Dawn community.
I have therefore, As International HOGD/AO Imperator, today issued an appeal to all of the brothers and sisters of the HOGD/AO around the entire world, to stand in magical solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn in invoking the magic of light to bring comfort and stability as called for by EOGD leader, Robert Zink.
To ensure the success of this united magical initiative of the Golden Dawn community, I am requesting that all of the Initiates of our outer order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, as well as all of the Adepts and Magisters of the Alpha Omega perform a Supreme Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram with this specific intention.
It is my sincere aspiration that this act of magical solidarity shall bring not only quick relief and comfort to the people of Haiti, but herald the beginning of an era of unprecedented peace, harmony, and solidarity between the EOGD and the HOGD/AO as well.
Greatly Honored Frater PDR:My wand - and the wands of all of the Brothers and Sisters of the HOGD/AO around the world, are raised in solidarity with your magical initiative on behalf of the people of Haiti!I concur with Robert Zink. Let us come together in this difficult time. But let us also walk our talk. Let us finally mutually begin to remove all of the remnants of the Golden Dawn Internet Feud from our orders respective fora, websites and blogs on a reciprocal basis, like the thousands of personal attacks remaining on the EOGD Yahoo! forum. To do otherwise would support Robert Zink's skeptics suspicion that his initiative really amounts to nothing more than taking advantage of disasters and loss of life to score public relations points.
Finally, I urge all of the brothers and sisters of the Golden Dawn not to merely let our assistance to Haiti end with this magical initiative. Let us also open up our wallets to speed the recovery along.
On a personal note, GH Frater PDR, I challenge you to join me in putting our money where our mouths are. I pledge to make personal donations from my private bank account matching personal donations that you make as well.
Send me the receipts for your donations and I will do likewise. Let us set an example for our order members with our generous donations, and prove to your skeptics that you are not merely trying to exploit a disaster to score political brownie points.
Sub Umbra Alarum Tuarum, Yeheshua
David Griffin
G.H. Frater Lux Ex Septentrionis
Imperator Ordinis,
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
outer order of the Rosicrucian
Order of Alpha et Omega
"Ex Deo Nascimur.
In Yeheshua Morimur.
Per Sanctum Spiritum Reviviscimus"
How To Learn Magick Online
Information
See the"'s Guide to the "There's a nexus which will
allow you to scout out your own torrent of information overload:
elists with which to pelt your ebox, ftp sites to swim in until you overload your memory-quota, and Usenet groups to overload your
newsreader. The problem is not access to information any more (at
least not once one has oriented and this doesn't take much time), it is sorting that in which we can find value from that in which we
cannot. { http://www.hollyfeld.org/magi }
Authority
A great part of the problem is that what's 'authoritative' is somewhat relative to the individual who is doing the review. There are emotional and imaginative approaches, dry and intellectual affairs, those based on not much experience, those based entirely on it, those who prefer their magick in armchairs, those who prefer it in Hell, in Heaven, in Space, in the Dirt, some with connections to organizations (covens, lodges, grottos, pronaos, churches, temples, etc.), some to traditions (lineages, sects, etc.) and some way out there in weirdsville-whoknowswhere.
Thoughts
The first step in determining 'authoritativeness' is to look INWARD.
What sorts of questions do you find valuable to contemplate? Are they pragmatic (how do I do X?), theoretical (what does X mean?), ethical (when is it bad to do X?), or some combination of these? If YOU were devising a test for aspirants (don't bother that you may be one
yourself), what questions would you put on this test (don't worry if you don't know answers!)? Making up the test will assist you in
beginning a comparison of knowledge-bases with others in the occult community online or off. Continue to look at these questions. Watch how your responses change as you meet people who approach the questions from different places. Add to that list of questions and restructure them as you proceed in your self-education.
Tastes
The second step in determining 'authoritativeness' is to look INWARD.
What are your TASTES with regard to magical and occult subjects and practices? If you don't know, then EXPLORE! Find out what tastes
good. Do angels and bunnies and light just turn you on? How about
Alien Infestations from the Horrid Depths of Space? Strange words
and weird mathematics? Just swimming in cool ponds during autumn?
There are many many different approaches to magick, even religious
ones! (see Islam/Sufism or the spate of repressed forums ostensibly dedicated to a discussion of "Christian Magick"). Explore as many
as suits your taste. Sometimes settling for what comes first is not the best means of attaining any goals you may have.
Activity
The third step in determining 'authoritativeness' is to EXPERIENCE.
Do things. Try out things and above all, FAIL MISERABLY. The failure is as important as is the success. The two are ultimately a product of warped thinking anyway. *Do things*, as the alt.magick.chaos people love to say. Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth
living. It may be equally true that the UNEXPERIENCED life is not
worth living. Be imaginative. Fly by the seat of your pants.
Take risks. Do the FORBIDDEN.
Reflection
The fourth step in determining 'authoritativeness' is to REFLECT.
See what people say in their words/actions/expressions which seems to conform to your experience of the world. When you can get a 'fix'
on someone and you LIKE what they are saying, then compare these people with others who may qualify in a similar way. Engage others and draw from THEIR experience and reflection. Develop your own ideas as a
result of critical thought ('Question Authority, dammit!) and your own practice as a result of creative exploration ('Do something, dammit!).
Abstraction
The last step in determining 'authoritativeness' is to PROJECT. Just because someone says something about which you do not agree this does not make them idiots. They may have experience which you do not have and they could be representing a very important and oft-overlooked
reflection. It is for this reason that it is quite difficult to be sure just who is and who is not an asshole without substance. Along the path of wizardry we do not burn our bridges, even while we may place small signs near them which say 'Of Uncertain Value'.
Growth
The most important principle in determining 'authoritativeness' is to develop it within ourselves. Suckling at the teats of masters may be important at certain stages of our growth, yet eventually we must
break away from the nest, we must try out our wings, we must take
risks and become reservoirs of experience and wisdom ourselves. If
nothing else, through such exploits we may become humble.
afternotes in response to request for elaboration:
>Make it up as you go along. Create your own style. This is how the
>current paths appeared. Keep making it up, revising as you learn more
>and more.
get imaginative. Explore the length and breadth of religious
and magical disciplines and techniques. Visualization? It is quite
effective for those who don't have a need or resource for material tools.
Look at all the divination systems available: astrology, qabalah, tarot, runes, etc., etc. Look at the spiritualist supply stores: ouija, rapping tables, esp cards, etc., etc. Look at the ceremonialist's shoppes: wands, swords, incenses, candles, cauldrons, etc., etc. Look at the fetishist supply stores: dildos, floggers, clamps, needles, razors, etc. etc. Look at the primitive and modern religious practices: drums, rattles, bells, lights, chanting, spinning, singing, etc., etc.
Check into the resources on 'natural highs' and 'psychotropics'. Check into the billions of ways to become a sorceror (one who explores the realms of consciousness). Magick may find its way to you.
...
Limits? There is no limit to magick. It can infuse and encompass
your entire life experience. You can click into the Wave of the World and become the Great Fool-Magus that attains to the Great Work and sets the world arights. Refashion the Cosmos to your liking, become God, do the Hokey Pokey!
copyright (c) nagasiva 1998
All rights reserved. Permission to distribute the text is
hereby granted providing that distribution is electronic, no money
is associated, reasonable attempts are made to use the latest version and all credits and this copyright notice are maintained.
tyagI@houskaos.Abyss.coM (I@AM)
tyagi nagasiva
Suggested ebooks:
Aubrey Bell - The Magic Of Spain
Joseph Ennemoser - The History Of Magic Vol 1
"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law"
I was in Dublin on Monday for business, but also found some time for book shopping. I found a most interesting book in Yellow Brick Road entitled '"Aleister Crowley and Dion Fortune: The Logos of the Aeon and the Shankti of the Age"' by Alan Richardson.
"Despite being published by Llewellyn (who are more miss than hit) I have found this to be a most wonderful book that begins at their deaths and works backwards through their parallel biographies. He frames this in the light of a text written by Crowley in 1911 called Liber Thisarb "on the backwards review. In this backwards review Richardson explores the relationship between Crowley and Fortune, their exchanged letters, and their mutual ideas throughout their careers. It shows that Crowley and Fortune weren't so different after all, both working towards liberation (in their own ways), both deeply involved with the question of sex magick, both involved in the war effort, and both adepts of the Western tradition. He even presents correspondence between Fortune and Crowley that implied that both she, and other members of her Fraternity of Inner Light were quite accepting of the law of Thelema, and may even have been initiates of the A.'.A.'.This is a very different image of Fortune than one might glean from some of the more puritanical literature surrounding her, as well as the attitudes of some of her followers, but in essence it does not change who Dion Fortune was. This book was written by someone who is certainly more Fortune than Crowley, but in an open willingness to explore these two individuals and their interactions and individual missions brings a deeper appreciation of both. I highly recommend this work, especially to those with an interest in Dion Fortune in the Thelemic community. The pure image of Fortune as a master of light, and the image of Crowley as the wickedest man in the world gives way to a synthesis and complementary symbiosis in the work of these two great initiates, bringing new vistas of exploration in the Western tradition...
"Love is the law, love under will"
